Cuisinart 14-Inch Stir-Fry Pan, Helper Handle and Glass Cover, Chef's Classic Stainless Steel, 726-38H

Further Update: 3/19/2019 -- updating to 5 stars. It is now my goto and favorite wok. I used it daily. I hardly ever use my Calphalon 13 inch SS wok or my Calphalon 12 inch hard-anodized wok anymore--every time I reach for one of the others, I change my mind and revert to this Cuisinart. This wok is big and light, and once gotten used to how it cooks, unbeatable. There certainly is something to be said about size--big is good. And weight--the Calphalons when loaded with food are hard to handle due to their weight. This Cuisinart is easy to maneuver full, or empty for cleaning. It is also easy to clean; just pre-soak in soapy water, dump and remove residue, and then use Bar Keeper's Friend (BKF) with soft, non-scratch, side of sponge. I tend to wash it once with BKF and then again with dish soap. I always clean it to spotless like new condition. I do not use super high cooking heat on range--on my gas range, I have settings of High-6-5-4-3-2-1; the highest I ever use is the 5 setting for stir frying=a high medium heat. I am careful with the glass cover so I don't crack it by hitting on something since it is a bit unwieldy. Overall, this is a great wok. I almost returned it when I first got it, and am so glad I didn't. Further Update: 2/17/2018 Amazon did couple of exchanges for me. One arrived with the disk on the bottom dented, and the other with the handles not aligned. Poor quality control and bad shipping. However, this pan is becoming my go to stir fry pan, and so I am upgrading to 5 stars from 4. It is light and that makes a difference when there is a lot of food--it is about one pound lighter than the Calphalon and that makes a big difference when tilting it with one hand to unload the food. And it is big--there's something to be said about size--when I stir-fry a few lbs. of green leafy veggies at one time, this pan is big enough to take it all--just heap it on. The Calphalons, at 12 and 13 inches, although only 2 and 1 inch smaller in top diameter, are more cone-shaped and have smaller bottoms and thus do not hold as much--what I had previously said was a liability for the Cuisinart and a plus for the Calphalon is now the opposite. I have gotten used to and adapted to the required stir-frying style with this pan--parking the food in the middle rather than the sides--the opposite of the Calphalons. All in all, have gotten more pleased with this and selecting it over the two Calphalons most of the time, in daily use. (Note: I stir-fry a lot of green leafy Chinese vegetables.) >>>> Update: I asked others if their wok scratched as easily, since my has acquired many scratch marks and I was using a Calphalon nylon spoon to stir-fry. Many indicated that theirs did not scratch easily. Mine also makes a crackling sound as it first heats up. I called Cuisinart and asked if what I experienced was normal, the rep said no, and for me to mail it in and they would give me a new one--however, I have to pay for shipping. If I did a return to Amazon I do not need to pay for shipping. So I am undecided. I do like the pan, but it has its favorable and unfavorable features. Pros: It is big but lightweight; many say it is heavy but I think it is light for its size. I weighed it without the cover, it is 2 lbs. and 13 oz.. In comparison, a 13 inch Calphalon Stainless Contemporary is 3 lbs. 9 oz., and a 12 inch Calphalon Hard Anodized is 3 lbs. 5 oz. So relatively speaking this Cuisinart 14 is light. Because it is so big, the likelihood of spill out on stir-frying is less, and so is the splatter. Cons: Because it has the disk on bottom but the sides are not encapsulated, the sides of the pan get hotter than the bottom, making it opposite from a typical stir-fry pan, where the bottom is hotter than the sides, and one can park food on the sides. I am not used to this yet, and my stir-frying comes out uneven. The flat bottom is too big, and the food does not naturally slide down. >>> As mentioned, I have a Calphalon 12 inch Hard Anodized that I use for serious stir-frying, and I was looking for something bigger in SS for daily use that would generate low splatter. I subsequently bought a 13 inch Calphalon Contemporary SS. I like the Calphalon 13 inch 3-ply SS, it stir-fries like the 12 inch Hard Anodized, with a small flat area allowing the food to slide naturally. The only other 14 inch SS out there is the All-Clad, a 5 ply, which is probably real heavy in addition to expensive, although likely a good wok. I am keeping the Calphalon 13 inch SS, but on thinking about returning this Cuisinart, I am a bit reluctant--it does have its merits--namely the size and lightness. It is not a bad wok even if it stir-fries differently. It is cheap, and worth keeping around--if storage space is not an issue. >>>>> I have an Innovation 11 inch deep skillet that I was using as a daily stir-fry pan, and a 12 inch Calphalon Hard Anodized for serious stir-frying. Having moved from an electric stove to a gas stove, the hotter flame and heat of gas caused a lot of splattering with the 11 inch Innovation, requiring much post-cooking cleanup. Thus I looked for a bigger stir-fry pan, of at least 14 inches and in stainless steel for daily use, since I already have the 12 inch Calphalon (which is superb). I was skeptical about the 7-inch diameter sized flat bottom--too big a flat area--the Calphalon is only about 4 inches @ 12 inch, thus more slopping. The comments about the glass cover exploding was bothersome, and the cheap price was puzzling--cheap is cheap and one gets what one pays for. Some reviewers mentioned that it was light while others said it was heavy. An All-clad 14 inch is like $300--and it is super heavy. At this price, it is worth a try. When I received it, I was amazed at how light weight it was. My All-clad 8 inch is almost the same weight. The light weight was concerning at first, seemingly indicating it was deficient in materials. Upon using it, I appreciated the light weight because it would be unmanageable with a full load of food otherwise. However, the pan scratches easily even though I have only used Calphalon nylon utensils--don't know why. I have been stir-frying for years and stir-frying with this pan is really different--not like with my two other pans--I have not figured it out yet--is it due to the use of lower heat (not high), or the larger diameter of the flat bottom, or the slope of the sides, or the heat distribution. I don't feel like I am really stir-frying, more like boiling the food and it takes longer to cook. The Calphalon stir-frys much easier and naturally. I don't know about this pan and have not come to a conclusion about the pan.

To preface, I cook asian meals everyday and stir-fry at least two dishes a day. I've been through 3 woks the past 3 years. Carbon steel which rusted if you soaked it or didnt dry it immediately. I could not season it well at all with a flat top electric range. Tossed that out and decided to go with non-stick. Non-stick worked well until stuff stuck or burned to it. Then it was goodbye. Bought a second of the same kind trying to be more careful but the same thing happened. I decided to go with stainless steel because no matter how much it sticks, you can always get it out with Bar Keepers Friend, soaking or as a last resort; steel wool. Read all the reviews before getting it and noticed a lot say it does not heat up well enough, it sticks, it doesn't clean well, the lid is too heavy and the wok is too light, and to only use it on medium low heat to avoid burned or stuck food. I tried it on medium low heat and it had so little heat that I could touch the sides of the pan and it wast even warm to the touch. Stir-fry meals came out soggy. I finally decided to use it on high heat, which is how stir-fry is supposed to be cooked at and everything worked great. Nothing stuck. Keep in mind, with stir-fry, you are supposed to be cooking at blazing hot temperatures in very little time. Often a dish is cooked less than 5 minutes. From my experience with this wok/stir-fry pan, those that mention burnt food are not cooking stir-fry at the speed it should be done and are not stirring as often as they should. A stir-fry should never be left alone and always tossed around until it is done cooking. Whatever leftover food stains on the wok can be worked out with some soaking and Bar Keepers Friend. BKF also removes the rainbow stains and hard water stains. I do not use the lid. It is way too heavy and you don't need it with stir-fry. As for the wok being too light, that's generally how it should be as the method used during stir-fry is to lift the wok up with one hand and dish/scrape the food onto a place with the other. If it was too heavy, you wouldn't be able to do this. In summary, when using this wok: 1. Use it on high heat 2. Add oil, wait for it to heat up 3. Add food. Usually it goes onions/garlic/ginger first, then meat/vegetables, then sauces 5. Babysit the dish with constant tossing. If you must simmer, lower the heat. If you want a thicker sauce, add corn starch and water mixture. Babysit, babysit, babysit. 6. Dish out onto plate 7. Soak wok in water, immerse fully 8. If there's still food stains, use Bar Keepers Friend I'm happy with this purchase. It is definitely a good investment as are most stainless steel cookware.

I originally purchased the Joyce Chen nonstick wok but after only 2 months the coating started to bubble up and peel. My husband insisted on replacing it with a stainless steel wok. I wasn't too crazy about stainless steel cookware because of the bad reviews. My mom also used to own a stainless steel set and although it looked really good, I remember that food burnt and stuck onto the pans, especially onto the frying pan. But my husband said he'll pay for it so I agreed. This Cuisinart wok took my breath away when I took it out of the box... it was very shiny and beautiful. It's also huge! My last wok was 12 inches in diameter and this one's 14. The first meal I cooked in this wok was stir-fried ginger beef. As expected with stainless, crud formed on the bottom of the pan during the searing process so I just kept stirring the meat so it won't burn. Those cruds actually gave the beef great flavor and thickened the sauce. It came off as soon as the liquid was stirred in (it's called deglazing). Since then, I've cooked all sorts of Asian food in it (I'm Asian, by the way), including chow mein and rice noodles. As long as you don't leave the food unstirred on high heat nothing would burn. The trick with stainless steel cookware is to preheat the oil really well before throwing anything in. I heat the oil on medium (medium-high when I'm in a hurry) for about 3-4 minutes. These pots heat quick so I don't wait too long. For sauteing veggies I heat the oil for only about 2 minutes since veggies aren't prone to sticking. Anyway, once the oil is hot, I put the meat in and just let it sit until the sides turn opaque. I keep the heat on medium. I always watch Anne Burrell on Food network and she always says to not move the meat right after placing it in the oil as it will release itself anyway when it's ready. I only lower the heat after adding the liquid/sauce. I think the glass lid is great - no need to keep opening the lid to peek in. I've never had any problems with condensation dripping off the sides. There's also no need for a steam hole since this wok wasn't meant to function as a pressure cooker. Cleaning was also surprisingly easy. I soak the wok in water for at least half an hour before scrubbing it with regular dishwashing liquid. Now, after months of regular use, the bottom of the wok isn't as shiny as it used to be, but it is very clean - no burn marks or any discoloration. I guess the secret to getting the burnt bits off (as with any kind of surface) is soaking. My husband and I love this wok and it looks like it is going to last us several years. It is one of our best buys this year.

I'm a cook by necessity, so bear that in mind with this review. I was interested in stir-fry cooking and initially bought a Cantonese carbon steel wok from a local mall to use with the electric stove in my apartment. Although it's fast to heat up and cool down, I found it would severely drop in temperature when meat was added to sear, often just letting it boil in its own juice. I picked up this pan because I have the other pans in this make and model and have really liked them. This pan is no exception. Here's what I've found so far: This pan is flat bottomed, and the flat bottom is wider in diameter than my carbon steel wok. It sits on my largest burner and allows more contact with the burner, keeping heat retention easier and more efficient. With the carbon steel wok, I often had to keep the burner on a much higher setting to counter act the rapid heat loss. I can keep this a a medium to medium-high setting with better results. Should I still get some excessive moisture (usually when searing ground turkey), I soak it up with the dip of a paper towel. The long handle and helper handle are awesome compared to the Cantonese style, and make cooking and transferring food simpler. Since this wok doesn't cool off as fast as a thinner carbon steel wok, I rely on the handles to quickly extract the food before it over cooks. A trade off, but hardly the end of the world. You could argue that a normal twelve inch skillet could be used instead of this wok, and I'd generally agree with you. However, last night I used it to stir fry a large bunch of leafy Bok Choy. The larger bowl shape of this pan accommodated the large leafy vegetables until they cooked down. I could easily stir the Bok Choy without it spilling out, a tricky task with a normal skillet. The shape also allows the spattering cooking oil to stay contained in the pan better as opposed to covering your range top. You can move some food away from the hotter flat bottom and it will hang out on the sides without getting overcooked. One thing that galled me about cooking with stainless steel was the 'Hot Pan/Wok, Cold Oil' technique. I discovered that if I placed the meat that I wanted to sear into the oil RIGHT AFTER I PUT IT INTO THE HOT WOK I didn't get any sticking. If I waited for the oil to begin to smoke, it would be too late and any protein would adhere. I've stir fried with chicken breasts and ground turkey like this with no issues. Clean up is fine using deglazing techniques, water soaking, and if need be, Bar Keeper's Friend and a stainless steel scouring pad. You can even toss it in the dishwasher if that interests you, but I've found the other cleaning methods faster and more effective than that. I don't use the lid except when storing to keep the dust out, but I'm happy it's there. I hope this helps you. I did a lot of reading before buying a wok, and based off of my experiences with this one, I really believe that on a standard electric coil stove, a traditional, thinner carbon steel wok may NOT be the best choice. But remember: I'm no purist. I just like to use what works!

For less than the cost of dinner for four at KFC you can own this souper fry pan... Yes I spelled it souper so you don't forget this is great for soups too. RE: TURBO COOK PAN REPLACEMENT Yep, I am tossing out my Turbo Cook Pan, but keeping the steel steamer tray and maybe using the stainless steel lid... Jury is out on the lid as I now have three to choose from: Stainless Steel, Traditional WOK, and Glass. I love my Turbo Cook Pan; Nothing cooks better in a short period of time; however the main pan is non-stick aluminum and does not last. I don't need to add aluminum or non-stick to my family's diet. RE: STAINLESS STEEL It is great that this is a flat bottomed stainless steel pan. My prior review, which I lost, had a story about sticking stainless steel pans. I went into the importance of manufacturers instructions as with my other pans I finally figured learned why my food was sticking and better ways to clean up after cooking from reading the instructions. Cuisinart's use and care guide covers has some interesting things to say regarding cooking with and cleaning this pan that you may want to review before using. (**I feel that many of the less than five star reviews may have been different if people had read the use and care guide first before using this pan.) Lastly, since this pan is to replace a non-stick pan I decided to put it to the test by frying tofu last night for making my hot curried tofu. There was some sticking, but as I was frying at a lower temperature when I cooked my veggies after the tofu all of the stuck food was released by the steam of the vegetables. RE: GLASS LID Many people's complaints about the glass lid are actually a feature of the lid. This pan was not designed for the traditional ultra high temperature WOK cooking. The glass lid will actually vapor seal to keep in veggie freshness. There is a right way to break the seal is in the use and care guide. So far I have not used the glass lid, but I intend to when I put this WOK to the task for making hot and sour soup. RE: PRICE I thought I had a great price when I purchased this pan a week ago from Amazon for $34.95 with super saver shipping included. At the time of this review you can get the same pan for $28.24 a full $6.71 less. If you are concerned about the glass lid as I was you could get this pan now and pick up a WOK lid at a thrift shop for a few bucks and still come out ahead. FYI: AMAZON's Post-Order Price Match Policy With the exception of TVs, we do not offer post-order price matching when an item's price drops after you buy it. Our prices regularly change, and the price you paid when your order shipped was the lowest price we were able to offer at the time. We consistently offer competitive prices on everything we carry because we know low prices are very important to our customers. RE: OTHER REVIEWS Read them all the good and the bad as you want to make an informed decision. Also, this is not a traditional high temperature wok, but if you are looking for one of those Amazon has one that looks good currently for $20.79 and $7.84. You also will have to get a WOK ring as this is round bottom, plus don't think about it if you have a gas glass cook top as the heat will break your cook top. (Yes I am sure someone will say I'm wrong on this, but that is what my SEARS instructions said when I installed mine ten years ago... Glass could be tougher now) UPDATE: 7/16/11 I've used this pan for several dinners and large soups and it has performed remarkably on my gas cooktop. So far I have used this glass top only as a dust cover for when I'm not using the pan. I have been using both my old WOK top and Stainless Steel Turbo Cooker Dome top... The reason for this is: 1. they work great with this pan and 2. I've read in several reviews about shattered tops, even though I suspect improper use, I want to be sure I'll be in the kitchen 100% of the time for my first couple glass top runs. CLEAN UP: After each use I fill the pan with water and let it soak while eating my meal. After that a green scrub pad makes short work of any food or stain on the inside of the pan. AGAIN THIS IS A GREAT PAN... DON'T DELAY note: I have read reviews that state this is not an induction pan, if you require an induction pan you may decide to look elsewhere. There was no claim in the write-up of this pan being an induction pan. (I understand the use of a one star review when talking about a product that you are trying to help keep others from making the same mistake they did, knowing that it isn't the manufacturers fault; for this reason Amazon needs a neutral star rating.) Update 6 September 2011: Since getting this pan I have used it five times a week. My glass top has been GREAT and no problems. Again HIGHLY recommend following instructions. Cleans like a dream. Makes more SOUP than than my Turbo-Cook pan ever did, and now I don't have to worry about eating non-stick material. When frying it is easier to use a WOK ALUMINUM lid as it is lighter and you don't have to worry about the glass lid. Update 20 May 2014: Burned my wok again walking away and forgetting that I had it on the stove for coffee water. I can not count the number of times that I have burned this great pot, but it is still flat as an ironing board on the bottom. Oh should you ever burn your wok too, just gently move it to an unlit burner and leave it alone until it cools before attempting to clean it. Update 1/17/2018: Yep burned again. Still flat as can be on the bottom. Great Pan. By the way I forgot to mention another appliance you don't need after getting this wok... Your Crock Pot is no longer needed. I just put this on the stove with low heat for any crock pot recipe and will shorten the cooking time by half. (Rough times as you still have to be sure meat cooks.) And just like a crock the more times you lift the lid the more loss of cooking energy. Great pot for split pea soup. I toss a pound or two of dried split peas in the pot. Wash and drain a few times in the wok as to not dirty other pans. Then add water, onions, garlic, and my leftover ham bone from dinner. Put that on low heat and cook for several hours before tasting. After that spice to taste. YUM

Woks are incredibly versatile and efficient however it's been my experience that the traditional Woks made of Carbon Steel end up being more of a hassle then they're worth. Seasoning them with oil never seems to prevent eventual rust and the Wok never feels clean as a sticky residue of oil must always remain. A huge fan of stainless steel cookware I did some browsing for a new Wok and came upon this exceptional value on a stainless steel 14 inch Wok, I couldn't add it to my cart fast enough and I can tell you this is one fabulous piece of cookware. The Wok is large and gorgeous - it's a bit shorter than mandarin style Woks but that's a non issue as it's still tall enough to load cooked food on the sides and keep splatter virtually inside the pan even at very high heat. Quality Touches: * Gorgeous Mirror Finish Stainless Steel * Two Cool Grip Handles (one long one short) * Aluminum Core Base For Even Hot Spot Free Heat Distribution * Beautifully Balanced * Oven Safe too 500 Degrees * Dishwasher Safe * Professional Quality All Rivet Construction * Tempered Glass Lid With Center Handle * Lifetime Warranty The excellent build quality is only surpassed by the performance of this excellent pan, it's pretty much effortless to cook with. Because of the aluminum core bottom you should cook on lower heat than you might have with other woks and you'll find you'll still get an excellent sear on meats. A quick swirl or brush of oil on the sides as well will keep food from sticking, which if you're keeping the pan and food moving at all times - except when steaming shouldn't be a problem. The Wok arrived beautifully packaged with all paper work included. Add the Free two day shipping with your Prime membership and this is one spectacular value.

Product arrived on time and packaged well. I am pleased how quickly it cooks food. I am happy that my food does not stick to the wok while cooking in high, medium, and low heat settings. The size of the wok is large enough to easily make one-pot meals. I am glad that the wok is light-weight and comfortable to use because I have arthritis in my fingers. The glass lid is heavier but it retains the steam and heat well for faster cooking time. Initially I was concerned that the wok was more shallow than traditional woks, but it doesn’t splatter much and food doesn’t spill out as I toss rigorously in high heat. Some may say that the cooked food doesn’t have that “wok flavor,” but that’s ok because I use a lot of fresh herbs in my cooking. The wok cleans easily with a little Soft Scrub for stainless steel pans. I’m also glad that I don’t need to season it after washing it. It’s a good quality wok!

Under Product Features, the first feature listed is: * 14-inch stir-fry pan made of 18/10 stainless steel with encapsulated aluminum core I assumed the feature listed here was true when I purchased this. However upon receiving the item there is nothing on the box, the pan itself, or in the papers with the item that affirm this is in fact 18/10 stainless steel. One would think if it was 18/10 stainless the box would say so given this would be a big selling feature. So the lack of this tells me the product description is simply wrong. I doubt anything malicious here, just a careless listing with false information. Regarding the item, when I first took it out of the box I was astonished at how light weight the stir fry pan was! I had expected it to have some weight to it, indicating solid construction, but it isn't, it's very light weight. I suppose this could be considered by some to be a positive because it makes the pan easy to carry and move around, but for cooking I'd prefer something a bit heavier (read, more solid construction). The lid on the other hand is surprisingly heavy, perhaps the glass has been thickened after some reviewers said the glass shattered when cooking. Lastly, the handle on the pan seems, well, just plain inadequate, the diameter is quite narrow (something I don't like given I have large hands), and the shape of it is just a bit odd looking. Since I just got the pan I can't comment on durability, but I do fear other reviewers may be correct that it doesn't wear well, and may in fact "rust", something I consider much more likely now that I believe this is not 18/10 stainless, however until that time, I will just rate the product on what I have found to this point (3 stars = ok, though I considered 2 stars given the false description, however if the pan does hold up with use, I won't hold this against them and will change the review to 4 stars, but if after use I find it doesn't hold up well, this 3 star rating will be lowered to 1 or 2 stars, depending on the severity of the problem).

Love this wok. It’s too large and heavy for tossing (in case you were wondering) but I have been using it for EVEYTHING. Enough space to cook 4-6 servings whenever I make pasta sauce for lasagna, fried rice, soup, etc. I have been very satisfied with this purchase.

Excellent cookware - cooking with a work of pure and utter craftsmanship.

I haven’t used myself will update from my wife’s feedback . Good material quality and strong handle looks great and it is huge

Se ve bien fabricado, buen peso

I was about to spend well over $100 on a wok but bought this after YouTube channel "Wok With Tak" highly recommended it - and it seriously changed my life. I've always hated cooking with my parents' woks because it was just so cumbersome to use and clean but this is so lightweight I don't hesitate to pull it out! I did a quick seasoning like he recommends in his videos and even though I don't do it all the time, nothing sticks. The lip also somehow makes for a mess-free pour even though it looks like it wouldn't. What a dream! My favourite thing to make is actually spaghetti because you can just put the long pasta in, cover with cold water, and let it boil for however long it needs to without having to watch over it and stir it constantly to prevent sticking like in a normal pot! I then drain most of the water and pour the sauce right in the pan with the spaghetti to heat and finish cooking the pasta. The wide surface area helps to heat up the sauce faster, the little bit of pasta liquid makes it silky, and because you're cooking everything together, the pasta is evenly coated! I've even left cleaning out the sauce until the next day, expecting it to require soaking, scrubbing, and swearing, but it washed wonderfully right away. Some of the reviews rated it lower because it only heats up the bottom of the pan but that's actually a feature of woks! It's so that you can keep food carmelized but not burnt by moving the food around the cooler sides. Overall this is a life-changing pan and a must if you: 1) hate cooking and want to make everything in one pot (like me), or 2) if you love cooking and want to have a pan with a ton of versatility (like my partner), and 3) if you also hate doing dishes (like the both of us)!